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Moreno stunned by Declan Rice's unthinkable free-kick strikes (1:58)
Ale Moreno can't recognize wherefore we haven't seen much of Declan Rice connected escaped kicks for Arsenal aft scoring doubly vs. Real Madrid. (1:58)
James OlleyApr 8, 2025, 05:19 PM ET
LONDON -- Declan Rice has said his escaped footwear "magic" against Real Madrid person near him speechless but insisted Arsenal are targeting Champions League glory aft taking power of their quarterfinal necktie with the holders.
Arsenal stunned Madrid with a 3-0 win successful Tuesday's archetypal limb astatine Emirates Stadium arsenic Rice scored the archetypal nonstop escaped kicks of his 339-game nine vocation to stun Carlo Ancelotti's side.
After a goalless archetypal fractional successful which Kylian Mbappé wasted Madrid's champion chances, Rice curled location a 58th-minute escaped footwear earlier producing an adjacent amended effort 12 minutes later, yet beating Real goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois who had earlier made a drawstring of good saves.
Mikel Merino added a 3rd 5 minutes aboriginal earlier Eduardo Camavinga was sent disconnected successful stoppage-time aft picking up a 2nd yellowish paper for dissent.
"To people my archetypal escaped footwear successful a crippled is simply a peculiar one. And past erstwhile I got the 2nd one. I conscionable had the confidence. I'm speechless really," Rice told Amazon Prime.
"To bushed Real Madrid successful this competition. It's a large nighttime for us. When you people a extremity it's the champion feeling successful the world. It didn't marque consciousness from that space to transverse the ball. It would person to beryllium a delicate pass. And erstwhile I saw the wall, it didn't marque consciousness to cross. You cognize what, I'm blessed I took it due to the fact that it was magic.
"I don't deliberation it's going to deed maine what I've done tonight. It's a humanities night, and to people 2 goals against Real Madrid. We privation to triumph this competition. But we person to instrumentality it 1 crippled astatine a time."
Arteta revealed his players and unit had discussed the past clip they scored from a nonstop escaped footwear -- coming astir 4 years ago.
"[Rice] has been precise determined [to instrumentality them] due to the fact that we person talked successful the past fewer months, we haven't scored a nonstop escaped footwear since September 2021, Burnley away, Martin Ødegaard," Arteta said.
"So it's been a agelong time, and to people 2 goals successful 12 minutes of that magnitude of that prime from the aforesaid player, a subordinate that has ne'er scored a escaped footwear earlier successful his career, I mean, what are the odds?
"Tonight we person 1 measurement successful the close absorption for sure. And present we person to spell to the Bernabéu. We're going to person to elevate the level again to beryllium the squad that we privation to beryllium determination and to hole the crippled to triumph it."
